The present invention relates generally to an adjustable basketball goal and more particularly to a basketball goal that can be moved rotationally as well as from side to side to allow an individual to simulate shots from all angles to the goal, even where there is limited playing area.
It will be appreciated by those skilled in the art that many individuals practice their basketball shooting on goals located on driveways or on some other limited space. It will further be appreciated by those skilled in the art that in such limited spaces such as driveways, shots to the goal from the comer or base line shots are very limited in that the width of the driveway or other constrained space limits the distance of the base line shot. It will further be appreciated by those skilled in the art that a shot from the right base line is much different than a shot from the left base line. As a result, the user must practice shots from both sides of the goal. This cannot be performed in constrained spaces. To this end, there have been several attempts to improve basketball goals.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,838,549 discloses a basketball retriever device issued Jun. 13, 1989, to the present applicant. Although this invention did provide a basketball retriever device, it only allowed front on shots such as that from the free throw line and allowed the ball to be returned to the user. No baseline shots were possible.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,218,058 issued to R. Hilbert et at. on Aug. 19, 1990, discloses an adjustable system for mounting a basketball goal which is vertically adjustable. However, no disclosure is made as to rotation of the goal.
U.S. Pat. No. 3,477,714 issued to W. Garlington on Nov. 11, 1969, discloses a goal which is moved laterally in relationship to the backboard. Unfortunately, the backboard is not moved. Further, the slot through which the basketball goal comes is susceptible to being hit by a ball. As a result, the gear is susceptible to wear and tear.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,239,214 issued to R. Brenner on Dec. 16, 1980, discloses a device which provides a backboard which can be bent in various directions to provide trick shots. Unfortunately, neither the backboard nor the goal are moved laterally to take advantage of a confined area.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,781,375 issued to S. Nye on Nov. 1, 1988, discloses an up and down movement of the goal and the backboard. However, neither lateral nor rotational movement is disclosed.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,239,214 issued to R. Brenner on Dec. 16, 1982, discloses another goal which can be moved in different positions in relationship to the backboard and allows curvature of the backboard to provide trick shots. However, neither lateral movement of the goal in relationship to the support nor rotational movement of the goal in relationship to the support is disclosed.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,643,422 issued to J. Cramblett on Feb. 17, 1987, discloses a vertically adjustable basketball goal. Unfortunately, neither rotation or lateral movement is provided.
What is needed, then, is a basketball goal which can be moved laterally as well as rotationally to simulate shots from different angles with the goal post and the shooter remaining at the same spot of the playing area. Preferrably, this goal will be capable of withstanding the elements so that it can be used outside. In such cases, this goal should not have the lateral mechanical movement device exposed to the elements. This device must be simple to use. The desired device should also be adaptable for inside use. Electrical motors and remote control devices are optional for use in driving the gears that operate the basketball goal of the present invention. Such a device is presently lacking in the prior art.